


Stealth Mission

by Scarfinator



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-13
Updated: 2017-01-13
Packaged: 2018-09-17 07:44:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9312125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarfinator/pseuds/Scarfinator
Summary: "Come on, THE Nico Yazawa? Playing online games? I don’t know what to tell you if you think I’m that kind of nerd. I don’t know what to tell you if you think I’d be hunching over a computer, eating doritos and wasting time grinding late into the night. Hunching is bad for your posture, doritos are bad for your diet, and staying up late is bad for your everything.But then I became that kind of hunching, dorito munching nerd."In which Nico Yazawa gets herself into an MMORPG against all better judgment.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Fairy Quest is fictional, but I haven't played an MMORPG in ages and all I've ever played is Maple Story so just imagine they're playing something similar to that I guess

It started a few weeks ago.

Rin got into this game called Fairy Quest. It’s one of those online RPGs that you always hear about people getting hopelessly addicted to. You know, the types who abandon their families, their lives, and end up starving in internet cafes over it. It’s ridiculous.

So she wanted all of us at μ’s to play with her. Naturally, I objected. Come on, THE Nico Yazawa? Playing online games? I don’t know what to tell you if you think I’m that kind of nerd. I don’t know what to tell you if you think I’d be hunching over a computer, eating doritos and wasting time grinding late into the night. Hunching is bad for your posture, doritos are bad for your diet, and staying up late is bad for your everything.

But then I became that kind of hunching, dorito munching nerd.

Turns out this stupid little game’s more popular than I thought. My little sister Cocoa’s the one who ended up dragging me into it. She heard about it from her own friends at school, and wanted some help learning how to play.

I didn’t know how she wanted me to help her, but I wasn’t about to let my sister get killed over and over by a bunch of adorable sprites. So I lent her a hand, showed her how it’s done.

I have to tell you, it’s thrilling. The enemies are cute, so you feel bad about pulverizing them. But then you get to the point where you can knock out several at once, and then you don’t feel bad anymore.

Cocoa got bored of the game soon enough. But by that time, I had helped her enough to know I wanted in on this.

I wasn’t about to let anyone else know, though.

So I made my own account, deciding to become a mage. I needed something flashy, something that screamed “Nico-nii is here to give the performance of a lifetime”! Balls of fire, icicles galore… I would put on a true concert of adorable carnage! Besides, Cocoa had been a warrior, so I wanted to try something different.

Like I said, I had my own little secret here. But that didn’t mean it didn’t get lonely just playing by myself. And you can’t make friends on here, you know? Most of them are just looking to cyber - I learned what that means the hard way - or want you just for a hard quest only to dump you right after.

Luckily for me, the game makes following other people easy. You can look them up if you know their screen name, and I know what my friends’ screen names are. It’s creepy, and maybe I’M creepy for stalking them, but I didn’t know what else to do.

I followed them, quickly made “friends” with them, and hoped that no one in μ’s would try to talk to me about Fairy Quest member “-idolish-charm-”. A chill ran down my spine whenever the thought crossed my mind. I couldn’t let that happen.

So today I’m following Honoka, Rin, Eli, and Nozomi on a group quest. They’re the only ones still playing, and even Eli’s only doing it because Nozomi is. You can tell - her outfit is just a drab old bit of archer garb you can pick up from Asgard Forest. Wearing anything better required cold hard cash - in-game purchases - a price any player who cares about their looks should be willing to pay.

Well, I spent more money than I should have on the outfits, but who can blame me? You’ve got to be willing to put forth the effort to look cute, and you have to be willing to pay the price. And Fairy Quest, true to its name, has plenty of cute pink goods just right for Nico, everyone’s favorite idol! I just couldn’t decide what I wanted!

I don’t need to say it, but Rin and Honoka are incredibly tacky. Like, bright colors all over the place, no coordination tacky. I bit my lip when I first saw them it’s so bad. You have no idea how hard I had to try not to give them a fashion lecture and blow my cover on the spot.

It fits them, though, so in the end I got used to it.

Nozomi, on the other hand, I can’t complain about. It fits her AND looks about as good as you can get with the limited customization. Except for that halo; does she want to make herself look innocent and pure? Because she’s anything but.

I’m surprised to hear Nozomi plays, by the way. But it makes sense if you think about it. She’s always on about spiritual this, spiritual that, so of course she’d be the fantasy loving kind of girl.

She’s a cleric, too. Typical Nozomi.

Oops, I got carried away! But fashion is important, you know? Even in video games. I hope you were taking notes.

So then we start our quest. These things are brutal. I can’t imagine doing them with just one person; it’s hard enough with five!

Maybe I shouldn’t have chosen a mage. We’re flashy, sure, but we’re also terrible with short range. I get that they want to keep Fairy Quest “balanced” or whatever, but why do we have to choose between being good at one thing and being good at another? The only true class for me is one that can do it all, and look adorable doing it.

‘I’m better than this,’ I think to myself while failing to fight off a horde of slimes I fell into. The hand drawn blobs mock me as I die and respawn, die and respawn.

I’ve fallen behind further in the quest than I thought. And time is running out. We’ll fail the quest at this rate.

My teeth grit, I accept the impending doom upon us, and then. My strained eyes catch a glance of the chat.

SpiritualPowah: “Nicocchi, are you doing all right?”

Oh. Crap.

Nozomi said that. Nozomi called me by name. Nickname, actually, but who cares about that?! The point is, they found me out.

PowerofNyan: “Ah! Nozomi, you’ve really done it!”

Bread421: “We weren’t supposed to tell her that we knew already!”

My face goes red. I’m about to say something - anything - to convince them that no, it’s not Nico right in front of them. It’s not Nico screwing up their whole mission.

But I know it won’t do any good. So I log off before any more of that horrible chat can happen. 

I immediately regret it. Not only will they fail the mission for sure now, but I’m still going to have to face them tomorrow about it. I’ve lied, I’ve stalked them, and now they all know about it.

Of course, this isn’t the first time I’ve done any of that. But that doesn’t make it any better.

My posture straightens, and a sharp pain shoots across my shoulders. I hadn’t realized I’d kept myself hunched that badly. And as I reach for another chip, I realize the bag is empty. I’m disgusted with how many gamer stereotypes I’m fulfilling. Why would I ever have denied that I was into Fairy Quest when all the signs were there?

As I’m sitting in front of the computer wallowing in self pity, the phone rings. Crap, it’s one of them.

Well, if I want a step in the right direction, I might as well pick up and face the consequences. So I do.

“Hello?”

“Nicocchi—“

“It wasn’t me, I swear!”

“……”

Already screwed that one up.

I think for a second, and then start talking again. “I mean, it totally wasn’t… Okay. I’m sorry. I bet you’re wondering, ‘what’s Nico doing playing this game? I thought she said Fairy Quest is stupid?’ and ‘oh, what a nerd!’ and—” I stop there. I know Nozomi better than to be the judging type, but of course my pride gets in the way once again.

“Nicocchi.” Nozomi’s voice sounds serious. Definitely not the carefree calmness it usually has.

I gawk at the phone for a minute. It’s not like I didn’t expect her to get serious on me, but it’s still unnerving.

“Why would I think any of that about you?” she says. “Why would any of us think that about you?” It’s like she knows exactly where to punch. Every time.

“Well, of course you would!” I yell. “I’ve said so many bad things about you guys playing the game, and after all, why would someone like ME be playing them in the first place?!”

“It’s okay, Nicocchi,” she says. Maybe she’s not angry at me after all?

“Wha—“

“That’s just how you are, Nicocchi. I should apologize for lying to you about not knowing who you were.”

She pauses for a moment. “You can’t always do this, though,” she continues. “You’ll just end up driving people away, and like tonight, you can hurt people through it. We lost that quest, you know?”

I go quiet for a few seconds, and then respond. “…You called me out on purpose, didn’t you?”

I can hear her chuckle through the receiver. “Who knows~ But, that’s not the point. The point is, you’re in a lot of trouble. How should we punish you, I wonder~?”

I don’t say anything. I just wait, grumble a bit, and listen to her idle humming. It’s idiotic, but there’s something soothing about it. Fitting for someone like Nozomi.

“I know~” she finally says. “You have to help me clean the shrine tomorrow morning. Meet me at 5, okay?”

“Wait— that early?!”

“Or would you rather the rest of μ’s hear about it? I’m sure that Maki would love to hear all about your escapades as -idolish-charm-.”

……

Like I said. Always knows where to punch.

“All right. I’ll help you out. Don’t expect anything else, thought!”

“Oh, are you sure? I was thinking of taking you out on the town afterwards~ To reward you for being such a good guild member. We could get some parfaits, and go shopping, and-”

“Not gonna happen. I’ll be too tired after all that cleaning.”

“Or, Maki could come to admire what an amazing mage you are, and bow to your omnipotence.“

I can’t believe this woman. “Okay, I’ll play with you afterward. Not for too long though, all right?”

“Alright, it’s a date~” she coos. “See you tomorrow, Nicocchi.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I mutter as I hang up the phone.

A date, huh… I guess a day stuck with Nozomi is what I get for treating my friends like this. 

I say that, but a smile still forms at the corners of my mouth. Nozomi can be a pain, but she’s still a close friend. And I’m grateful that she wasn’t any madder at me.

Things could have turned out worse.


End file.
